Becoming a Monk in Jadheng
The Process of becoming a monk
Whilst the monks of the four temples are for the most part open-minded and pleasant people, gaining access to the lore and teachers residing in the temples requires first and foremost an invitation, for the Monks of Jadheng follow the will of nature and can sense others possessing a connection with the same forces. This invitation is extended by sending a respective animal of one of the temples - a Feixei for the Temple of Shangessi, a Biang kai Onoghrog for Shangoghro and so forth. The masters of each temple are able to sense which natural force the person has closer connection with. Once it is found, the masters the animals are dispatched. Following such an invitation, if the invitee is of noble blood, they are accepted and tested without delay to see the extent of their raw power. The animal that delivers the message is then used by the Master of the respective temple as a medium to pass the tasks to the aspiring monk. Once the show of magical prowess has been successfully completed, if the person is of noble blood, they are to attest to this fact by allowing the animal to draw blood from the aspiring monk's hand. If the person is indeed of noble blood, then they are taken in and must make their journey to the respective temple. Refusal is possible, but it is traditionally seen as great dishonor and something that could bring misfortune to the respective house. If the person is of common blood, they could attempt to sway the master through gifts of gold or item of great value. The outcome of this greatly depends on the respective master performing the tests and the power of the aspiring monk. It has sometimes been said that the temples only accept powerful commoners amongst them out of fear, that the untrained commoners possessing magical powers could cause great destruction or be recruited and join one of the secret cults who Jadheng has been fighting for 400 years to root out, but as the cycle of seasons changes and teaches the people of Jadheng, so do the enemies of the old empire, but these lessons are much harsher and more costly. In either situation, once the novice passes the tests and reaches the temple, his/her training is commenced. How long the training takes is dependent on each person - how willing they are to learn, how much they take from their resting time to explore the books and consult the scrolls, how much they meditate under the open sky. The last point is most important as one of the paths to becoming a master and tapping into all that the natural world has to offer is through meditation and accessing the "Path Unthreaded". The final destination for all monks is enlightenment, which grants the monk the ability to turn into an envoy of the natural order, a large magical bird, similar to the Zhei-xei, a common mount used by the nobles for transport and warfare. The greater the connection to the natural world, the larger the size of the form. Whilst it is not certain how large the person could become in the bird form, the third emperor of Jadheng had such a strong connection to the natural order, that he could grow as tall as the guard towers surrounding Sheniqhal, at most 20 metres tall. The path to becoming enlightened is long and arduous, and many monks reach old age and greet death, without ever getting close to becoming enlightened and speaking to the living earth face to face.
"Monks of Yhtar training to control the cold flames of Shenfal"
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